When the Winnipeg Jets unveiled their new logos last week to show off just how the team will be represented, opinions seemed to be split as to whether or not fans liked it. It seemed as if you either loved them and felt they were ideal for the rebirth of the team name, or that it was hackneyed and tried way too hard to impress.

There are some who felt otherwise about the design, however, thinking that perhaps it took the whole military look and inspiration a bit too far. If you didn’t know, the Jets’ new logo used the designs of the Royal Canadian Air Force to help them come up with a look of their own. The Jets are even making a donation to Canadian forces leading some to think the team is just leasing the logo’s design.

With those sorts of tie-ins and outer involvement, noted hockey blogger Tom Benjamin of Canucks Corner is more than a little concerned with how closely hockey and the military are involved. Benjamin makes note that while nationalism and hockey are often paired up in Canada, the Jets’ new look hits home a bit too closely and with too much of an obvious purpose.

The line between supporting the troops and supporting the miltary mission is becoming too fine for me. Nationalism and hockey have always been impossible to separate in Canada, but that has not necessarily been a good thing for the game (or the country, for that matter.) Xenophobia held hockey back for a long time and international competitions seldom bring out the best in the Canadian fans.

The new Jets logo is a weapons system superimposed on a flag inside a military insignia. Cool, eh? Who couldn’t support that?

Benjamin’s points here are curious and more than thought-provoking. He cites Don Cherry’s shout-outs to the troops during Hockey Night in Canada and how being proud of them and their sacrifices are a noble thing to do, but mixing the nationalism and the hockey is getting to be a bit much.

Arousing national or even local pride in the sport is a very big deal in Canada but in the NHL on the whole it’s not a foreign concept. The Columbus Blue Jackets are named for the Union Army in the Civil War and currently have the Ohio state flag as part of their logo and uniform. The Ohio flag also gives off a majorly American feel being red, white, and blue with stars and stripes. The Calgary Flames have both the Canadian flag and the Alberta provincial flag on their uniforms, one on each shoulder.

Even in the past there was the Quebec Nordiques whose uniform colors were that of the Quebec provincial flag with the fleur-de-lis included on it and everything. Trying to keep local tie-ins or national ones has been tough to do in some cases. Hell, you could even dig into Canadian junior hockey with the Brampton Battalion which is full-on military inspired in its own right.

In short, teams are going to find inspiration for their teams from anywhere possible and finding ways to market the teams will be equally creative. That’s not to say Benjamin doesn’t have a reason to be fretful, his reasons are solid, but perhaps not taking things to be so serious would be a better way to look at it.

Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion addressed a wide variety of subjects today, and he mostly said what needed to be said, but also left the door open just enough to allow all sorts of sadness to slip through.

“It’s tough because I think management did want to sign me, but I think that the owner didn’t. And that was his decision,” Turris said.

Yeah, not good.

There are many rumor swirling around Senators owner Eugene Melnyk, whether he ends up retaining his ownership status or not. It’s no secret, really, that Ottawa has been a budget-conscious franchise at times, which certainly brings into question whether they can stomach paying Karlsson what he actually deserves. Especially if things don’t settle down.

Dorion did what he could to affirm his shot-calling strength to the media, as Mendes and others report:

“Everything in the hockey department goes through me, not Mr. Melnyk,” Dorion said.

Speaking of the hockey department, Dorion also noted that a coaching change won’t happen.

Personally speaking, this is the area where it’s easiest to see eye-to-eye with Dorion. While Guy Boucher’s leanings, from the 1-3-1 and on, frequently make for yawn-inducing hockey, it’s difficult to quibble with the results. In a way, Boucher might be so effective that he’s put himself in a pickle: by creating a mirage with such a strong run, many likely expected the Senators to keep pulling rabbits out of hats.

We’ve seen plenty of Jack Adams winners become victims of past successes. In some cases, they got there through sheer luck. With Boucher, it might be a mix of shrewdness and luck, and now that luck is fading away.

Long story short, firing Boucher would be foolish when he’s likely made Dorion and others look smart.

Amusingly enough, you could apply a similar logic to the dangers of trading Erik Karlsson. The superb Swede is the sort of talent who can camouflage a lot of issues; moving him would essentially be an admission of defeat, as you’re simply not going to get a fair return in any EK swap. The only sensible situation in which a Karlsson trade happens would be if you went into a rebuild, and it could be a grim one in that.

Speaking of grim, that remains the best way to describe the current state of affairs for the Senators, who are suffering from dealing with tough situations but also, in some cases, from self-inflicted wounds.

When it comes to impressive milestones, some numbers register with players, fans, and media more than others.

With that in mind, it’s not overly shocking that Henrik Lundqvist essentially shrugged his shoulders when he was informed that he was on the verge of 20,000 saves, which would make him the 15th goalie to do so. NHL.com’s Dan Rosen reports that Lundqvist admits he’s more interested in wins (and you can be certain more interested in a certain large, silver thing you can drink and eat out of.)

“It means a lot to me to be up there with those names,” Lundqvist said. “The amount of saves, I don’t know, I’ve never really thought about that number. I’m happy I’ve been able to play a lot of hockey throughout my 12 and a half seasons here. That’s pretty much the only thought I get when I hear 20,000 saves.”

Lundqvist needs four stops to reach that mark, in case you’re counting.

Rosen recently provided perspective that should really cement that Lundqvist isn’t merely accruing volume: “King Henrik” is slated to allow the lowest total of goals of any netminder who’s collected 20,000 saves. Lundqvist comes into tonight’s game with 1,748 goals allowed, while Jacques Plante is the current gold standard in that regarding, giving up 1,960.

Lundqvist notes that he’s happy to have played a lot of hockey, and that brings something else to mind: how remarkable a success story he really is.

It’s easy to forget that the Rangers drafted Lundqvist in the seventh round (205th overall) back in 2000. You don’t hear Lundqvist’s name mentioned all that often when people discuss all-time draft steals, perhaps because goalies are tough to project and possibly also because he took off almost the instant he hit the NHL.

In 2005-06, Lundqvist managed a sparkling .922 save percentage in 53 games as a rookie, helping the Rangers make the playoffs. He really never looked back, and Hank is really starting to pile up milestones, all while managing a fantastic .920 career save percentage.

Maybe that’s also part of the reason this is such a “meh” thing for Lundqvist: he’s probably getting bored when it comes to setting high marks.

Two other interesting goalie milestones

While Lundqvist has been the model for consistent brilliance for more than a decade, two other veteran goalies are reaching or have reached fairly significant milestones, even as their careers have been far more turbulent.

It’s been an odd career for Ward, who started off hot as the 25th pick of the 2002 NHL Draft. As you almost certainly remember, Ward won the Conn Smythe Trophy as a rookie, taking over for the Hurricanes mid-playoff-run (after a weak regular season for Ward) and helping them to a shocking Stanley Cup. How bizarre is it to realize that both Ward and Lundqvist would diverge after sensational starts to their NHL careers? Considering where they were drafted, many probably would have tabbed Ward to be the guy with great year-in, year-out numbers, yet he’s instead floundered, sitting with backup-like career save percentage of .909.

Still, he has that championship ring, so there’s at least one area where he’d draw Lundqvist’s envy.

The third goalie of note was taken before Ward in the 2002 NHL Draft, as Kari Lehtonen‘s walked an odd path since going second overall that year.

There were flashes of genius during his early days, yet injuries and inconsistency marred his Atlanta Thrashers run with disappointment. His time with the Dallas Stars has been mixed, as he’s gone from a goalie who often carried an over-matched team to a netminder who, along with Antti Niemi, often held the Stars back.

(Many will, fairly, point out that Lehtonen’s play dipped noticeably after concussion issues, opening another “what if?” door for the occasionally star-crossed goalie.)

Either way, he aims for win 300 of his own tonight, as he’s getting back-to-back games as the Stars face the Islanders.

As an aside, one might find it interesting that Kari Lehtonen currently boasts the same average save percentage of .912 between his Stars and Thrashers years. Maybe he’s just been secretly consistent?

Ultimately, this could be quite the week for goalie milestones, even if certain marks might be met with a shrug by the netminders in question.

All apologies to Epix, but “The Road to the Winter Classic” series just feels rightheading to NBCSN.

The documentary series that gave us memorable moments like Bruce Boudreau avowing his love for ice cream, Boudreau unleashing a fugue state of locker-room profanities, and also great moments not featuring Boudreau is set to debut at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN tonight, spotlighting the New York Rangers and Buffalo Sabres as they approach the outdoor extravaganza.

For fans who want to see more personality from hockey players, this is manna from heaven. The good stuff goes beyond that, really, as sports documentaries are almost always fun to watch, but it only gets better when the NHL is involved.

To whet your appetite for well-filmed and well-scored peeks behind the curtain, enjoy some teasers for the first episode.

In the video above this post’s headline, you’ll note Alain Vigneault and the Rangers discussing things getting back on track as the team adjusts to a different core, including the addition of Kevin Shattenkirk.

The best stuff, for me at least, comes when there’s humor, and that’s where the next couple of videos shine.

First, we have some nice self-effacing fun from Zach Bogosian, who provides much of the banter for the Sabres’ charity bowling event:

Next, here’s some fun-goofy footage of Rangers players taking the subway to practice:

Note: the NHL should mandate that players wear their uniforms in more inorganic situations, as that’s always fun. Plus it really would align with the advertising practice of having hockey players in their sweaters, even when they’re at restaurants or making toast.

Anyway, “Road to the Winter Classic” should be a good time, and should find a fitting home on NBCSN. It should pair well with tonight’s Bruins – Red Wings game, which you can read more about here.